by Garth Meyer
Placemaking on Artesia Blvd. moved a step closer Dec. 16 when the Redondo Beach city council approved a plan for 10 or more art installations between Inglewood Avenue and Aviation Blvd.
The action followed a plan to “enhance the Artesia Corridor” presented by consultant Beau Basse. Phase 1 will include two large median pieces, two welcome monuments, two crosswalk-art paintings and improvements to five existing concrete benches.
“Not just sculptural, but potentially lighting,” Basse said.
The art, to be funded by $450,000 from the city’s John Parsons Public Art Fund, needs to be on city-owned land.
Basse noted that the city’s Cultural Arts Commission has proposed a separate, LGBTQ+ sculpture at the library, estimated at $32,500.
“Could you do some more outreach (first)?” asked City Councilman Scott Behrendt.
Basse said the additional project would include outreach.
A previous community outreach campaign about the overall Artesia art project drew 171 responses, followed by a community meeting at the North branch library.
As for the planned work, Councilman Zein Obagi, Jr., expressed concern about painted crosswalks fading and Basse said the paint usually lasts three to five years. The council also discussed whether the new city logo may be used on welcome signs, or not.
“The art becomes the branding,” Basse said.
On another topic, he said, “Interactive, sort of hidden moments, that was one thing the Cultural Arts Commission asked that we include more of.”
Councilman Brad Waller said that he would support the LBGTQ+ addition. Mayor Jim Light said more public feedback is needed first.
In public input at the Dec. 17 council hearing, resident Teresa Mitchell suggested that art in the street median is too removed from pedestrians.
“The public can’t experience art in the median. It doesn’t really keep people in the business district, and make it an interesting district,” she said.
Desiree Gilassi, another near-Artesia resident, echoed Mitchell’s point.
Basse noted that the purpose of median art is to get people to slow down and stop, versus for the people already walking.
City Manager Mike Witzansky noted that this is likely just the first phase of the project. An as-yet-unfunded Phase Two may follow.
“We want to go for a lasting impact (compared to) things that are going to be transient,” he said.
Councilman Obagi, Jr., made a motion to fund the LBGTQ+ public outreach, and the $450,000 for the main project, which also covers contingency and Basse’s $45,000 contract.
The city hired Basse’s firm, Lebasse Projects (Los Angeles), last May to develop an art plan for the Artesia corridor.
A community panel made up of Cultural Arts Commissioners, city staff and residents reviewed the plan in November. It requested the city council emphasize “interactive or discovery-focused artworks,” as well as making the request for the LGBTQ+-themed sculpture at the library.
Lebasse’s work for other cities includes a $3.5 million roadway medians project in Glendale, a temporary 10-year wall in Beverly Hills, sculptural benches and wrapped city buses for West Hollywood – even a job in Abha, Saudi Arabia.
Lebasse Projects acts as producers once the artists are hired.
The Redondo Beach “Artesia and Aviation Corridor Area Plan” began in 2020. The city council identified public art as a way to increase pedestrian presence and cultural vitality.
Money for the Parsons Public Art Fund comes from one percent of Redondo Beach capital improvement and private development projects. ER
One Response
Slowing down the traffic should be included in any plan to encourage pedestrians along the business section of Artesia Blvd. Recently I had to walk the corridor for medical appointments. Boring route, speeding cars and trucks make it uncomfortable. E bikes on sidewalk and ugly shopping center. Hookah Hut needing a coat of paint…and fresh plants. Use the funds for art enhancements to line the street with large floral planters….add seasonal flowers to the median….and dress up the ugly shopping centers. I get in my car and drive to the Manhattan Beach Village shopping….a lovely environment in which to walk and enjoy a coffee or lunch. On a positive note, I am so happy to finally enjoy a dedicated turning signal at Artesia and Rindge.